Absolution
by Theonewhodidnotdoit
Summary: At the end of a long and bloody war, it is time to find out: Who is the victor, who is the villain, and who bears the blame? Oneshot.


**Absolution**

The war had been as long as it had been bloody. For years, two armies locked in vicious, animalistic conflict, both sides giving their all, clamouring for the other's destruction. Countless litres of blood had been spilt, so many battlefields turned to red-stained ashen wastelands. War machines and infantry alike had fought and died, crashing to the ground with their last breath a curse unto the enemy. It had been truly horrifying.

With a sort of grim satisfaction, Phoebe, the Flame King, was relieved it was all over.

She just wished she had won. After a vital loss of ground in the Grasslands, her troops began to be pushed back at an alarming rate, the Candy soldiers slaughtering their way to her citadel. Just this morning, the Gumball Guardians had breached her walls, and Bonnibel's legion had swept in like a tide, slaughtering every civilian they came across as they marched to her palace.

She'd known her chances of victory were slim when she'd started this war. Bonnibel was an analyst, a scientist, and that meant that within a month, before even the first skirmish, she'd equipped every one of her soldiers with flameproof armour and blades that sapped the essence of fire from an elemental's very being. She'd seen it first hand. One of her generals stuck through with a gem-tipped lance as she escaped from a midnight raid on a forward base. His eyes had gone wide, his flame had gone out, and his body fell to the ground, a lifeless husk.

And now she was beaten. Not a single drop of power remained in her last Sleeping Fire Giant, and she'd ordered her soldiers to surrender when the enemy reached the gates. They were to let them in, and warn them that the Flame King would fight them till her last breath. She had come to terms with her defeat, and thought it only fitting that she go out with it.

Despite her begging him not to, as she sat on her throne waiting, her loyal knight Cinnamon Bun stood before her, lance at the ready, armour shining in the firelight, and expression adamant. He wasn't going to let anyone touch her without going through him first. It was sweet, but unnecessary. They'd lost. She was happy to die at a Candy soldier's hand, but she didn't want him to die for her. There wasn't any point to it. Nevertheless, her pleas fell on selectively deaf ears, and there he stood, waiting. Her father and Don Jon had long ago been moved to the dungeons, to a place where they couldn't slip into outside flames and make pacts with the enemy. If they knew what was going on, then they'd probably be rejoicing. The long-awaited end of this new, weak Fire Kingdom.

A flambit slipped through the crack in the bottom of the main door and scampered to the throne.

"Your majesty," It bowed, "the doors were opened for the enemy, as you commanded. Unfortunately, they slaughtered the guards anyway. I was sent to give you a message."

Phoebe cursed. PB had never been afraid to stoop low, but killing those who had lain their weapons on the floor? She had just gotten worse as the war dragged on. All Fire elemental's she came across were immediately slaughtered, be them soldier, spy or civilian.

"And what was that?" She asked.

"They're sending a champion to capture you and bring you back to the Candy Kingdom."

"They'll have to go through me first." Growled her confectionary guardian.

"And I'll die before I leave this room." She said. "Thank you, little one. I advise you run and hide. This room will not be safe for very long." The flambit nodded and ran off, tail between his stubby legs.

The two remained there, waiting. Nothing was spoken. There was nothing left to be said.

Soon, they heard the sound of armoured boots on the stone floor outside. A slow, heavy footfall, growing steadily louder until it almost echoed. Phoebe felt her hands clench at the armrests of the throne. She knew who it was. She just wished it wasn't, hoped with all her heart that it was someone else-

The door began to creak open, the gap widening to reveal a gleaming blue suit of armour. The metal was visibly, even through its flameshield, a shade of deep cobalt, with none of the tarnish one would expect from a warrior. The figure was tall and imposing, a wide chest made wider by its impressively carved chestplate, the metal contoured to emulate fur. Similar designs covered the arms and legs, the gauntlets and greaves sculpted into paws, complete with talons. The helmet was both the most impressive and most unsettling. It took the shape of a roaring bear's head, teeth three inches long, the mouth open in a fixed roar, a glassy black screen obscuring the wearer's identity. She didn't need to see the face though. She knew just from the sword that hung at his belt.

It was pure white, a blade that looked like it had been sculpted by angels. A spherical blue jewel adorned the hilt, handle as yet ungripped by its owner.

He just stood there, in the doorway. She had the strangest feeling he was staring at her, which he probably was. It had been quite some time since anybody of the Candy Army had seen her, and she had changed considerably in the past few years. She had grown taller, and as many had told her, much more beautiful. Not only had her body matured, but her mind too. War had left her a different person, hardened by death and suffering. And now, she stood ready to make the final loss of her reign.

The figure took a step forward, and Cinnamon Bun stepped in front of her. The figure stopped. Its head dipped down and its shoulders slumped, a barely audible sigh escaping the ferocious-looking helmet. With clawlike hands, it reached up to remove the mask, the metal covering disengaging with a soft hiss.

She had been right. It was him. Her saviour, her lover, her traitor. Finn the Human.

He had changed too, perhaps more than her. Gone were the bright eyes and carefree smile, now replaced with piercing pools of cyan, one crossed over by a deep, diagonal scar, and a tight-lipped scowl. His physique had improved remarkably, if the armour was anything to go by, and his trademark hat was gone, a blonde mane now tumbling out over his back. His expression seemed set in stone, concealing whatever emotion he might have been feeling at that moment. He held the ursine helmet against his hip, and spoke in a deep rumble:

"It's over." It was a fact, plain and simple. "Please, give yourselves up. I don't want to fight either of you."

"Too bad." Replied Cinnamon Bun. "To get to her, you go through me." Finn sighed again.

"If that's the way you want to do it, fine. But remember, I didn't want to." He put his helmet back on, obscuring his face, and drew his sword. It had grown with him over the years, from a one-handed shortsword to a long, two-handed blade. It sliced through the air as he found his stance, and stopped. You could have mistaken him for a statue, he was so still.

CB moved to stand directly between him and her, his own weapon at the ready. He too was still, but the slightest waver betrayed him. He had seen very little of the actual battlefield, mostly staying with her as a bodyguard or duking with rebellious nobles. He was not as practiced. Neither was he as fast, as strong, or as heavily armoured. He was going to lose.

Hopefully Finn still had a shred of mercy after all these years.

The two fighters faced off, black eyes staring down black visor. They did not move, they did not speak. Finally, CB broke the silence.

"You're the aggressor here. You go first."

"...If that's what you want, fine." Replied the man. He began to move forward. Cinnamon Bun stood his ground.

The first swing was blindingly fast. Finn whirled around, sword spinning in a deadly arc, only to scrape across the cross guard of the bun's lance, brought up just in time. Finn dragged the weapon over the enemy steel, catching the swing in his other hand and reversing it, keeping a constant barrage of lightning fast attacks against his opponent, allowing CB no time to retaliate or risk being cut in half. The bun barely escaped the loop by ducking under a slash, taking a jab at Finn, deflected by his sword, moving it with incredible precision. He swept the lance away, putting CB off balanced. As the candy being stumbled, Finn settled into a crouch, his arms shaking as his sword seemed to vibrate with power.

CB recovered, and Finn sprang forward, faster than the eye could see, reappearing on the bun's other side, sword down. There was a second of silence. Then CB's lance exploded into shrapnel, piercing his armour and embedding in his soft flesh. He cried out, and stumbled back... Right into Finn's blade. The human raked his blade over the back of the bun's knees, slicing through vital tendons and sending sugary blood spraying onto the stony ground. Cinnamon Bun collapsed to the ground, unarmed and incapacitated, but still conscious. From a pouch on his belt, Finn plucked a roll of bandages, tossing them back to the Bun, who grudgingly picked them up, teeth gritted through the pain. Finn turned to the King.

"I'm bringing you both in alive." He said, rumbling through the helmet.

"Are those your orders?" She asked. "Or what you want to do?"

"Both." She scoffed.

"I don't believe you. Do you think me a fool? I've heard stories of the Azure Bear from my wounded soldiers. You've slaughtered hundreds of my men, maybe even thousands!"

"I've killed less than you might think." He responded, tone even and measured.

"Well..." She stood up, her flames growing brighter. "You'll be adding one more to that number whether you like it or not." She summoned fireballs into her hands, and leapt at him. He quickly sheathed his sword, bringing his fists up to block her fiery blows.

She gritted her teeth, containing her rage, channeling it into her ever hotter fires. She struck over and over, and he blocked each in turn, never striking back. This in itself made her angry. Was he not treating her as an equal? Was he still sappy over her, after everything they'd done to each other? She struck with renewed ferocity, her features shifting, form changing, pushing Finn back as he was forced to put more and more into defence.

Then, she slipped up. A punch that had overextended, passed over his shoulder. She was vulnerable. He slipped to the side and dealt a hammer blow to the back of her neck with his elbow, sending her sprawling to the floor, her head swimming.

"I'm sorry it had to come to this..." Sighed Finn. A fresh scowl broke out on Phoebe's face, her eyes reaching a new level of brightness.

"I'm NOT!" She yelled, bursting back into the air and landing a square uppercut on Finn's chin. He flew up, flipped backwards, and landed on his feet. A searching hand found his helmet was dented, the neck seal broken. He ripped it off, casting it to the ground, shaking his hair free. There was still next to no emotion on his face, save for a glimmer of pity in his eyes.

She charged forward, getting faster, stronger and angrier by the second. Still, Finn blocked, but he now threw in small blows of his own. A jab to the ribs, a kick to her knee, small attacks designed to bait her, to knock her off balance, to get her to lose control. She knew this, and yet still it was working.

She lashed out, slipping though his guard and catching him around the face. He stumbled, dropping his defences momentarily, and she dove at him, bodily shoving him to the ground. He fell to the floor with the clang of metal on stone, scraping across the floor. She ran at him, fireball in hand, only for an arm to knock her legs out from under her, taking her to the floor as well. He rolled to his knees, hands clasped into a hammer above her, and brought it crashing down to meet the ground. She dissolved into flames and raced across the room in the nick of time, his fists instead smashing a hole in the flooring.

Reforming, she let out a roar of frustration, growing ever hotter and larger. He pulled his fists out of the ground and stood facing her, face still blank. She found that so infuriating! Was he not affected? Didn't he care what he'd done? She felt the weight of every one of Bubblegum's soldier's deaths on her shoulders, and here he was, trying to take her in with pity in his eyes!?

Then and there, she let it go.

Her body erupted, growing exponentially larger, so much that her hair brushed the room's tall vaulted ceiling. Her face morphed into a demonic, roaring guise, her clothes and body shifting into a formless blaze. Finn stood his ground, despite the gigantic display of raw power. Her temperature even pierced the Flame shield he wore, the heat pricking at the skin on his face. Cinnamon Bun watched his Monarch's loss of control in horror.

"Princess! Calm down!" He called out, but she didn't hear. She brought a titanic fist crashing down on a spot Finn had been but milliseconds ago, leaving a sizeable crater. She scorched the ground with white-hot fire, only for him to leap onto a wall, clinging to a climbing dagger to avoid dropping into the inferno below. She smashed another fist into the wall, reducing it to rubble, but once again missing her agile target. As she pulled back her fist, she searched for him, only for a small, sharp pain to spike in her back. He had jumped onto her!

She clawed at her back, sweeping fiery arms over wherever she felt a disturbance, but he kept moving, making his way higher and higher up. Eventually, making a huge leap, he sunk his knife into her neck. It barely hurt her at all because of her sheer size, but it let her know that he was in reach. With speed unbecoming of her bulk, she snatched him up in one hand, tearing him from his perch and holding him in front of her, squeezing hard. His bearlike armour began to crumple, the metal screeching under the immense force. He looked up at her, saw the fury in her eyes, and knew he only had one more chance. He grabbed his main sword from its loop and plunged it into the base of her thumb. This time, the wound was deep, and she cried out in pain. Her grip loosened for a moment, and she brought her hand back toward her to pull out the offending object.

Using this momentum, Finn pushed off her hand with all his might, launching himself into the air, straight towards her head. He made contact with the gem that adorned her forehead, and grabbed hold via the top ridge. Quickly, he pulled a tiny blue crystal from his belt pouch, clasped it in his palm, and smashed it straight into the Crimson gem.

The effect was instantaneous. Phoebe, who had just pulled the sword from her hand, went very still. Her fires dimmed, her face changed to that of one stunned, and the sword clattered to the ground, the only sound save for laboured breathing. Finn dropped from his height, landing hard on the floor with a thud, but unharmed. Cinnamon Bun looked up at his ruler in shock, unable to form words.

She began to shrink, her fire dimming as the energy was sapped from her being. It was all leaving, sucked up into the blue crystal, and her body could no longer sustain its size. She fell, now normal size and a sickly shade of burgundy, her hair limp and eyes closed. Finn caught her in his arms, laying her gently on the scarred ground. Her eyes grew heavy, and she fought to stay awake. The last thing she heard before darkness claimed her was Finn's voice.

XXXXXXXXXXX

She awoke hours later, jolting awake with a gasp. Her eyes flashed open, taking in her environment. She was on a bed, in a small, metal room, with bars across one wall and a faint rumbling under the floor. A prison. No doubt on one of Bubblegum's huge metal war machines. She'd witnessed them roll across her lands, massive iron fortresses on tank treads, filled to the brim with soldiers and invulnerable to assault of any kind. One had reportedly even steamrolled through a volcano to flank one of their bases at one point. In hindsight, it was a miracle the Fire Kingdom had lasted this long at all.

There was a small electric lamp hanging from the roof, currently off, the only light to see by being from a blinking red light some way down the corridor. She pulled the lamp's cord to take a closer look at her surroundings, quickly discovering that Cinnamon Bun was in the room with her, unconscious on the bed opposite. She was relieved to see his legs had been bandaged properly, but soon turned her attention to herself. What had happened to her? She looked at her hands. She was as dark as if she had been extinguished, but she felt fine. She tried summoning up a flame. Nothing appeared, but she felt power swirling inside her matrix. What had he done to her?

She reached up to her forehead, feeling the tiny foreign lump on the flat surface of the gem embedded there. Whatever it was, it was preventing her from using her powers, but she had no idea how to remove it, or whether it was safe to do so. In any case, it was too small to get a grip on anyway, so there was no point worrying about it. For all she knew, Bubblegum might only have had Finn keep her alive so that she could be publicly executed back in her Kingdom. And what of Cinnamon Bun? He was technically guilty of treason, a traitor to his people. Surely he would deserve punishment just as she would. Things definitely weren't looking good. She sat down on her bed, a feeling of empty dread settling in her stomach. She hadn't even managed to die with her reign. Now, a fate that she dare not contemplate awaited her and her knight. And then what of her people? What would the survivors do? Honestly, most of them were quite dumb, as well as vicious. They might starve, or maybe turn on each other without their ruler. Oh, everything was a mess...

Her ears pricked up at the sound of heavy footsteps some way down the corridor. She quickly jerked the lamp's cord and jumped back onto the bed, feigning sleep. She wasn't entirely sure why she did, but she did it anyway. Talking with a Candy soldier likely wouldn't be all that constructive anyway. The footsteps grew louder and louder, becoming increasingly apparent that the visitor was wearing metal boots. Was it-

The footsteps stopped. She fought to keep her appearance normal.

"I know one of you is awake." Rats. It was him. There was a jingling of keys, the swing of a door, and Finn was inside the cell. He turned the light on, and Phoebe couldn't help but recoil from the light. The jig was up. "Come on, FP. I brought you both something to drink."

She didn't want anything from him... But now that he mentioned it, she was really thirsty. She waited a moment and sat up, Finn giving her a faint smile. He handed her a metal mug filled with petrol, and she took it, resolutely avoiding eye contact. As she gulped it down, he set down a mug of fructose syrup for CB by his bed, then stood up, just looking at her.

She finished her drink and gave him a glare.

"What do you want?" He shrugged.

"Thought you might be thirsty. Plus, CB might need some of this when he wakes up." He produced an IV bag filled with pink fluid. Painkillers, presumably, but when dealing with Bubblegum, it was best not to take things at face value. She took the bag and returned his stare.

"Anything else?" He got the message, and seemed to find it amusing, given how his lip twitched. He was acting oddly. She hadn't seen him in years before that day, and he had obviously changed a lot, but compared to how he had been in her throne room he seemed like a whole different person.

"No. Not really. I did think you might want to ask some questions though..." Teasingly, he made to leave, stepping through the door and about to walk off-

"Wait." He stopped, and leant on the bars, a faint smile on his lips that made her simmer on the inside.

"Yes?"

"Where are we going?"

"The Candy Kingdom, of course."

"How long until we get there?"

"Probably three hours."

"And what's going to happen to us when we get there?" Finn sighed.

"She's not going to execute you. I can tell you that. What she will do... I don't know."

"Why not?"

"Huh?"

"Why isn't she going to execute me? We've been at war for years, slaughtered thousands of each other's people, gone through every dirty, underhanded trick in the book, and now she doesn't want me executed?!" Towards the end, it turned into a breathless rant, and she gasped for air, a slightly redder tinge to her face. Then, Finn had the nerve to laugh.

It was a small one, more of a snicker. But it just... got to her.

"What?! Why are you laughing?! Don't you care? Thousands of people are dead! And you've probably killed more than any other soldier in this whole war! Do you just not care? Is Finn the Human just a callous, bloodthirsty mercenary now?!" She was getting noticeably worked up, the gem on her head throbbing dangerously.

"FP..." Finn said warningly, just a little hurt by her words.

"Shut up! You clearly don't even care about your own side or mine! You're just in it for blood! You just-" she paused, suddenly unsteady on her feet, she glowed bright, then dimmed dangerously dark. She collapsed to the floor.

In an instant, Finn was back in the room, picking her up and laying her down on her bed. His face was blank. She tried to croak out a few words, but he shushed her.

"None of what you just said is true. PB will explain when you see her."

"Wha..."

"And try not to get worked up. That thing I used on you basically makes your powers run really inefficiently. Get too emotional and you'll burn yourself out."

He stood up to leave. "Get some sleep. Best way to pass the time." And then he was gone.

That left her more confused than angry, but she couldn't find the energy to stay awake...

XXXXXXXXXXXX

PB waited at the city gates for the escort to arrive. The entire Kingdom had turned out to see the end of the war, with a jovial banquet planned for the evening. Now they stood with her, silent as they waited for the transport to arrive. The wind blew on her face as she stood stock still, listening to the far-off rumble of the machinery that powered the vehicle. She had put out a general order to her people that there was to be no heckling or throwing things, but she didn't trust them that much to keep to it. Lovable morons, every one of them. Becoming a bit more liberal over the years had really shown her that first hand. Leave the kingdom for an hour without specific instructions for them, and they'll end up accidentally setting each other on fire. And somehow then manage to find a way of setting the water they tried to put themselves out with on fire.

They really were hopeless. But she loved them all the same. And they loved her back. They'd gone to war for her. They had no reason to hate the Fire Kingdom other than the fact that their ruler didn't get along with the nasty, evil Flame ruler. She knew that the Fire people were likely the same way, if a little more bloodthirsty. The whole war was her and Phoebe's fault, not their peoples. Petty pride and disagreements. Time to set things right.

The transport cleared the closest hill, and slowly rumbled to a halt before the Kingdom's gates. She put on her best official face and watched the dispatch ramp descend from the belly of the machine. It thudded onto the soft grass, revealing Finn, the quenched Flame Princess in handcuffs, and Cinnamon Bun in a wheelchair. Looking particularly heroic for the occasion, Finn lead the two of them down the ramp, over the crisp grass and towards the Princess, Candy people on both sides cheering and booing in a great cacophony.

Phoebe kept her eyes abjectly on the ground, unwilling to look at the people she had spent years trying to destroy. She, the very incarnation of destruction. Ironic. She noticed Cinnamon Bun was getting a lot of abuse as well, probably more than her. He kept his eyes focused firmly ahead, paying no attention to the baying crowds as he wheeled himself in Finn's wake. He'd been allowed the dignity of pushing himself along.

They reached PB, and Finn took a knee, knocking his breastplate with a fist. This was as far as the formalities extended, however.

"Sup, PB." She gave him a wry smile.

"Nothing much. Come on, get them inside, I'll be with you in a minute." He nodded and opened the gate, guiding the prisoners through it and into the city as PB stepped up to address the baying crowd. "Citizens! Rejoice! The war is ove-"

The gate slammed shut, cutting off her voice. Despite the jovial tone, to Phoebe, it seemed a statement of macabre finality. But her punishment hadn't even started yet...

Finn lead them down the deserted streets, its occupants' cheering a weak noise in the distance now. They walked in though the palace doors; barely even fortified. PB must have been pretty confident that she'd never be raided herself...

Finn opened a secret door in a hallway down into an underground cell. Comfortable enough, two beds, a table and chairs, but the walls were steel under a coat of paint. Unyielding. An unopened pack of playing cards sat on the table.

She sat down on one of the beds, looking despondent. CB wheeled in next to her, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. He looked up at Finn standing in the doorway.

"PB'll be down in ten minutes." He said, before locking the door behind him and walking away. Cinnamon Bun watched him go, then turned his attention back to his mistress.

"Are you okay?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"No, not really. I just lost a war, got captured and paraded around in front of the enemy by my ex-boyfriend, and am currently awaiting horrifying, yet non-lethal punishment. Plus, I'm being mean to my loyal knight." She buried her face in her hands and started to sob softly, and CB patted her shoulder reassuringly, not knowing what else to say.

The ten minutes passed slowly, but Bubblegum appeared relatively soon, flanked by Finn, who looked bigger than ever next to her. He'd changed out of his armour, now in a pair of jeans and blue shirt, his sword still at his side. Sickeningly, Bubblegum was all smiles when she walked in. It wasn't certain whether it was a real, friendly one or a patronising, gloating grin. Phoebe chalked it up to Bubblegum's Machiavellian streak.

"Finn, why don't you take Cinnamon Bun to the next room and explain it all there? I'd like to explain this one on one. I'm pretty sure he has some questions for you too." For a fraction of a second, Finn's face fell, but it disappeared almost instantly, too fast to be seen for sure.

"Of course, Princess." He said, looking to Cinnamon Bun. The pastry gave Flame Princess a look of reassurance, and wheeled himself past Bubblegum, through the door, Finn closing it behind him.

They were alone. FP wondered if she was strong enough to kill Bubblegum with her bare hands. Probably not, and she was probably armed anyway. Bubblegum sat down at the table, and indicated that she do the same. After a moment, she did.

They sat in silence for a second. PB spoke first.

"Phoebe...?"

"What?" She snapped. Bubblegum sighed.

"The day I tried to disable your Giants, you called me a bad person."

"Yes. I did. And?" Why was she bothering with the monosyllabic replies? What use was pride now?

"I hope what I'm about to tell you will change your mind about that." FP scoffed.

"Pfft. Fat chance, Bonnibel." The Candy monarch was not deterred.

"How many people do you think died over the course of this war?" FP winced. Too many. Far too many. So much blood, all on their hands...

"Thousands. A lot more on my side than yours." PB gave a knowing smile.

"Not even close." FP glared at her, keeping her temper under control as much as possible. She didn't want to faint.

"Oh yeah? Tell me then! Did we hit the million mark a while ago, or was I too busy to care?" She felt a dull pain beginning to throb in her chest, but she pressed on. "The difference between you and me, Bonnibel, is that I actually cared about all the soldiers that died. Mine and yours, while you just slaughtered everyone and everything you found, soldiers, civilians, women and children-" the pain stabbed at her chest and she hunched over the table in nausea. When she looked up again, Bubblegum's face was sad, yet seemingly sympathetic. Infuriating.

"I can see why you would think that. But-"

"Think? I know. You've always been like this. You've got eyes everywhere. You find a person's weakness and mercilessly exploit it. Like this!" She tapped her forehead. "What is this, anyway? How long were you cooking it up for? Months? Years? Decades?"

"It's a parasitic elemental matrix transistor. It disrupts your energy flow, makes you incredibly inefficient at running your powers. It sprouted from my other proj-" PB calmly explained, only for the increasingly angry FP to cut her off again.

"There! You see what I mean? You just..."

"Oh, shut up, Phoebe." The prisoner stopped for a second, surprised at the un-ladylike turn. Long enough. "I want you to listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you. And know that it is the 100% truth." Tentatively, FP nodded, intrigued. "Good. Here I go." She leant forward, enunciating carefully.

"Over the course of this whole war, from the start to the finish, neither you or I have sustained a single casualty." FP blinked.

"Wha...?"

"Nobody died, Phoebe. Let me show you." She took a small dagger and handheld screen from her bag. FP recognised the blade. It was the same design as all of the weapons carried by PB's army. A serrated, golden blade tipped by pink crystal, the pommel black inlaid with pink taffy. Lethal at a touch to any Fire Elemental. She recoiled instinctively, but Bubblegum didn't brandish the weapon at her, instead triggering a hidden clasp, opening up the grip. She showed it to her guest, pointing at the components.

"Here's how they work. This channel here is constructed from an elemental conductor. When you unsheathe the blade, it creates a negative potential in this chamber here, sucking elemental essence from the target at a touch. And as you know, elemental consciousnesses are tied to their essence..." In Phoebe's mind, it was starting to come together. It couldn't be, though. It just wasn't possible. PB saw the disbelief and smiled again. She then pointed at an array of cubic green crystals lodged at the side of the mechanism. "This is where it's stored. Every soldier my guys 'killed' was just condensed down into one of these things..." She put down the knife and picked up the screen. "...And stored here."

FP looked at the screen. It was grainy black and white CCTV footage, a camera panning over a warehouse filled to the brim with those tiny crystals, all visibly pulsating with light. She couldn't believe her eyes.

"They're all alive, Phoebe. And I can bring them back any time. As for my people, well, Decorpsinator Serum is useful stuff..." She put the items away, letting the message sink in.

FP felt cheated. Betrayed. Relieved. Dumbstruck. Ecstatic. Furious. All at once.

"I..." She gaped. "...Why?" PB gave her another hopeful smile,

"Maybe I'm not such a bad person after all, huh?"

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Cinnamon Bun stared at the table in front of him, having just received the same news from Finn. He hadn't said a word since the reveal.

"CB?" Finn waved his hand in front of the pastry's face.

"...Sorry." He responded. "It's just a lot to take in. I mean... All the death and destruction I saw in this war... It wasn't even real."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"It's brilliant. But I just feel... Cheated. And I bet the Princess feels so too, probably ten times worse." He looked up at Finn. "Explains why you're so happy, too." Finn frowned.

"Huh?"

"How you were all smiles when you came to see us, even after the big weary war hero act you put on in the throne room." Finn smiled awkwardly, scratching his cheek.

"Yeah. I'm an okay actor. I just needed to rile her up. Couldn't smack her with the crystal unless she grew bigger. Figured the best way to do that was to be all aloof and mysterious."

"The eye scar sold us on it. How'd you get that?" Finn traced the scar tissue crossing over one socket where a blade had sliced but millimetres from his eye with a nostalgic smile. He wore scars with pride, and this one was his favourite.

"Some hotshot Fire elemental sword fighter over in the east. Used two at once, weird."

"Swordmaster Phyron." CB clarified. "You beat him?"

"Yup. Fair and square. Didn't use one of PB's special swords or anything. Well, not until after I beat him." He chuckled at the memory, and spiralled off into recollection, still tracing the scar. "Apparently ladies really dig it."

"Apparently? Really?"

"Well, I wouldn't know. LSP screams at me about it a lot, but I can't trust a word she says these days. She usually just turns into mush when she sees me. Like, literal mush. It's gross."

CB sighed again. Finn was chatting to him like the last decade was just a dream. He might as well be the half-baked, goofy ball of dough resident of the Candy Kingdom he used to be, toddling around without a care in the world, for all it was worth. The war had been for nothing. But they hadn't lost anything either. All that was left to do was wait. Whatever the case, he felt better for the weight on his shoulders being lifted.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"What are you going to do to me?" Struggling with a rabid pack of emotions, Phoebe focused on the most immediately pressing matter. Bonnibel just smiled coyly.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm the ruler of the Kingdom your people have been fighting for years. They won't rest until they see me punished. You have to."

"Please. I love them all, but they're idiots. I could go out now and make them think I'd already punished you by telling them that they just forgot." She raised an eyebrow. "In fact, tell me exactly what your crimes against my Kingdom are." FP stopped for a second. Bubblegum was just being ridiculous now.

"Attempted genocide, destruction of property, and a lot of arson."

"Pfft. If I had someone executed every time someone's house got burned down my Kingdom would be empty by now." She smirked. "Besides, I can't very well let all the Fire people out without a monarch to keep them in line. As far as I know, they're only a bit less stupid than my peeps. It'd be chaos." FP had to admit that was true. They both ruled nations of imbeciles.

"So what are you going to do to me?" PB sobered up.

"Level with you." She leant forward. "Look, this war had nothing to do with either of our people. We didn't get along, and our people ran with it. I was a condescending know-it-all blee-blop, and you were a stuck-up idealist brat, we didn't get along, and it turned into war. I ended up winning, but that's not what matters."

"Then what-?"

"First, Phoebe, I'm going to apologise. Whilst I wouldn't say either of us are blameless, I definitely have at least 60% of it. I'm sorry for causing all this. I can't imagine how awful it must have been for you." FP was taken aback by the sincerity in her voice. It had been a strange day, but this was the capstone. Bubblegum started back up.

"But now it's over. And we have to decide what to do next. I wager we're both a good bit wiser now, so we won't make the same mistakes again. I want the Fire Kingdom to live on, but I can only let its carry on like that if you're willing to help me."

"What do you mean?"

"Let me put it this way. If I pulled out that little gem right now, what would you do?" Ten minutes ago, she would have instantly turned the castle into sugary cinders and smoke. But now...

"I... Don't actually know. Probably nothing." PB looked down at the little screen again.

"Hmm. Yeah, lie detector checks out."

"Wait, you're-"

"Not important. Listen. If you can Royal Promise me that we can cooperate from now on, I can let your people go, return you to your full power, make the Candy people forget you were ever our enemy, and begin to rebuild relations. All you have to do is work with me, and we can finally get along." She stood up and walked over to the wall, hands clasped tightly behind her back. "The day all this started... When you called me a bad person. It kinda got to me. I was pretty tyrannical, but when you run this crazy town you have to make sure nobody's doing anything really bad. I overstepped my boundaries, and I thought it was my job to regulate everyone. It wasn't, and I realise that now. I'm sorry." FP sighed.

"I still don't trust you, Bubblegum. But I don't really have a choice. And if what you've told me is all true, I can't afford to refuse."

"Believe me, girl, I'm not playing you. Not this time." She sat back down, a lighter tone now pervading the room.

"Shall we talk plans, then?" With a feeling of a crushing weight being lifted from her heart, Phoebe nodded.

"Yeah, that sounds good."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Little more than two months later, the progress had been incredible. PB had released her warehouse of captive elementals back into the Fire Kingdom, leaving them dazed and confused, but very much alive. Trade relations between the two nations had exploded as the two rulers brushed the war out of their absentminded populaces' heads. Coal and caramel flowed freely over the borders, and the two economies skyrocketed, whilst every other Kingdom in Ooo looked on, slack-jawed, at the reversal.

The Fire Kingdom had been completely repaired, partly by Candy construction materials, which turned out to be quite hardy. There were even some Candy people living permanently in the outer plain villages, where the heat was more tolerable, and the same on the fringes of the Candy Kingdom, helping in the toffee forges.

For FP, healthy and strong again in her palace, it was almost perfect. Bonnibel had delivered, and she readily believed the pink woman had changed for the better.

That was by no means an admission that she had lost her subversive streak, though. She'd requested that Cinnamon Bun stay a while back in the Candy Kingdom to catch up and help build relations with the candy population, something no elemental ambassador could do. When FP had shown reluctance, she'd offered her own knight in exchange, to help protect her if need be and to help with diplomacy or military drills. She'd agreed to Bubblegum's charming offer perhaps a little too quickly.

You see, it had never crossed her mind that the Candy people were anywhere near militaristically competent enough on their own to be even considered for a knighthood. Meaning PB would only have one knight.

That is, the big blue bear of a man who was spending the current month stomping around the castle with an annoyingly happy smile. Finn.

It's not like she had anything against him. The whole fiasco from their early relationship was far behind her. And he was making himself useful, helping with construction work, cutting and hefting stone, training her guards. Glob, in a way, he'd saved her life, knocking her out and denying her her death wish. If anything, she was just the tiniest bit jealous of him.

He hadn't had to go through the anguish of the war. He'd have known from the start that no one was going to die, and have marched out smiling, ready to fight, knowing that he was already on the right side. He acted in exactly the same way walking through the palace corridors, humming or singing in that electronic singsong voice. He was almost exactly the same as he had been so long ago, bar the fact he was older, that he was a few heads taller than her when she didn't have her hair up, and that scar. She wasn't entirely sure he got that legitimately. Seemed too perfect to not be staged. If she was being honest, (oh, the irony) it was pretty hot, and she hated that.

...Okay, maybe she did have something against him.

It was just... Unfair. Plus, the fact that he still acted so similar, so blameless, stirred up feelings she'd made sure were stone dead years ago, at the start of the war. And the scar certainly wasn't helping. Argh.

She had noticed that he was slightly more reserved when talking to her. She'd watched him play rough and tumble with some of the domesticated Fire Wolves, teach her younger brothers to swordfight, and attempt to wrestle a thirty-foot magma golem, and he never lost the grin. But when he talked to her, he was somewhat... subdued. Whether it was because he still held a torch for her, was unsure of how welcome he was there, or because she was unconsciously intimidating him, she didn't know, but she wished he'd stop. Even before the war, after she took over the Kingdom, he never visited, and even when he did it was just for business. Had he really never gotten over her?

Sitting on her throne in the room alone, she groaned. Everything was great in her life, bar this one little thing. The international scene was calm, the economic scene was booming, and she had more free time than ever before. Unfortunately, this meant that she had more time to let her mind wander onto that one thing. Her people were practically self-sufficient for the first time in their lives, too, so no one queued up asking for help any more. She almost missed it. What did Bubblegum do when she wasn't frantically reining in her people's rampant idiocy? She had to have something she did when she wasn't researching or ruling. She took a walk around the castle, chatting to any servant she met. For the most part they were too busy to talk long, however, and she had to move on.

It then suddenly came to her that she was moping around. The Flame King did not mope. She was going to walk straight up to Finn, ask him what he was thinking, and damn it, she'd get an answer.

She strode out into the courtyard, where Finn was supposed to be instructing the Third Volcanic Infantry Legion in hand-to-hand combat. What was actually happening was basically a huge, sprawling, shirtless roughhouse. Several were unconscious, most were bruised, and all were grinning. Finn was in the centre of the fray, with the Captain by the scruff of his neck, repeatedly punching the officer in the face, while the Captain did exactly the same thing to him.

As soon as they noticed her, however, it quickly halted. There was some mumbling, some apologising, a few promises to clean the place up, but she didn't really mind. Better this than having an incompetent unit.

"Don't worry about it boys, do what you have to do. Dismissed. Not you, Finn. I'd like to talk to you." She quickly scanned him with her eyes, then averted he gaze. "And put your shirt back on." She said, not quite so authoritatively.

She walked, him in tow, back into the castle, arms folded behind her back. He shuffled along behind her awkwardly. Already in his mind he was concocting an escape plan for whatever this scolding was going to be about. His Flameshield was going to expire soon. Yeah, that would probably slide. He wondered if she knew about the incident in the kitchens the other day.

"Finn, I wanted to talk to you about your behaviour lately." He paused. This wasn't what he had been expecting. "I noticed you've been acting more subdued around me. Quieter." She turned around to face him. "I want to know why." Finn nearly froze. This was not the sort of thing he could run away from.

"I... Well..." He attempted. She looked at him expectantly. "I guess it's just because... You're kind of... scary now." She frowned.

"How so?"

"You're always walking around with your arms bent behind your back, using fancy words, not smiling... I just... Get the feel you don't really like me. Which is kinda understandable. So, I just... Try to stay out of your hair."

"Um." She wasn't really sure how to respond. He was definitely being honest with her, that was for sure. "I... Wasn't aware that I..."

"Yeah, see, you're doing it again. You get all stiff and don't do anything with your face." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Really, it kinda reminds me of how PB used to get sometimes." That got her attention. "I beg I should be kinda used to it by now, but I kinda feel like I'm in the way, or being annoying." Now that she thought about it, it was actually true. She had been a bit stiff and cold with him.

"I... I'm sorry, Finn. I didn't know. I don't hate you. Not even a little bit." He smiled.

"Aw, thanks. That's more like the old FP." She barely had time to raise an eyebrow before he was apologising. "Uh, wait! I didn't mean it's like that! Hang on, how did you take tha- Um, if you think that was a negative thing, it wasn't, I promise!"

"Calm down, Finn. I didn't take it badly. In fact, it's nice to know that I look happy again..." She sighed and he went silent. "Can I ask you one more thing, Finn?"

"Uh, sure?"

"Why did PB send you here? I mean, yeah, she wanted to see CB again properly, maybe make up a little for how she used to treat him, but... Why send you here? She may be better now, but she still has so darn many ulterior motives that it's crazy." He laughed softly.

"You got that right. Well, she never really told me why she wanted me to go besides all the political jazz, but she did give me this." He rooted around in his pocket for a second and brought out a Manila envelope. On the front blazed a rune, protecting it from the heat. "She said to give it to you if you ever asked why I was really here. You never really asked until now, so..." He handed it to her, and she tore it open, plucking its contents from the hold. On it was a few sentences, in Bonnibel's princessy handwriting.

_He still has a thing for you. I understand you probably don't like that, but we both know he's not going to try anything. I just want him to be happy, and whether you take him back, put him down or just ignore it, him being there will help. _

_Try not to blow up. -B_

She blinked, and reminded her body to do just that. Seeing her scrunching it up and burning it, Finn frowned.

"You okay? Was it bad?" She didn't say anything at first. But, hell, honesty was her policy.

"She said you still have a thing for me." He froze, muttered something under his breath, and looked away.

"...Yeah."

"She also said that she just wanted you to be happy, whether that meant getting over me or not." She offered him a wry smile. "Which is fine by me." He blushed a little, and looked at her.

"What?"

"Finn, I know you've grown up a lot in some places. But I don't hold any affection for you from the old days, but there's no resentment either. We're both different people now." She took a step towards him. "And frankly, you're crazy to want to date a girl made of fire anyway. But you know what? Anything's possible. You showed me that. So I'm not going to say anything about the future. It's possible, just, that I might fall in love with you again." Finn couldn't believe his ears. "But right now, I don't know. You might not even be my type. Anything's possible." She smiled.

"Just keep on being a hero, don't gronk up, and we'll see what happens." She gave him a soft punch in the shoulder, and walked away, leaving him slack-jawed.

She barely understood herself at that point. So she'd made that clear. She hadn't crushed him, she hadn't given him false hope, and who knew what would happen in the future? This was a fresh start. He'd saved her from her guilt back in the throne room at the end of the war. That was a good start for him, but what could she say? All was said and done, and the future wasn't worth worrying about.

Standing back where the conversation had taken place, Finn's mind was working overtime. Was he meant to try and impress her? Just give up? What was he supposed to do? He took a breath, sat down and drew his sword.

"What do you think, buddy?" He spoke into the gem, where his eternally young alternate self resided.

"Dude, I know what she's talking about. You don't need to do anything. It might work out, it might not. Only way it will happen is if you just carry on being you. Try and be anybody else to impress her and you're just setting both of you up for another fall."

"...Yeah. You're right. Thanks, man." He sheathed the sword and stood up. Just be yourself and hope for the best. He could do that. Walking away, he whispered quietly to himself:

"Up the wizard's steps..."


End file.
